The Gravity of It All
by High Roller Yunalesca
Summary: [Human AU; takes place between "Eyes on Me" and "Love Like You"] Petunia has had enough. There's only one way for her to get away from her family and from the music business...


"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Pearl asks her friend. "I mean, faking your own _suicide?_"

"Yes," Petunia replies eagerly. "Why are you having doubts now?"

"Yeah, why now?" Kimber asks in agreement, somewhat bewildered that Pearl is suddenly having second thoughts. "I'm the one you had to convince to even be a part of this. It does sound crazy, though... using me as a stunt double for a fake suicide."

"Yeah, Pearl," Petunia says. "All we're doing is switching places. She happens to look just like me and she'll even be wearing my clothes. All she has to do is jump off and then we'll be done. I'm telling you, it's going to be _easy_!"

Pearl still can't shake the feeling off. "There's got to be another way. I mean, maybe–"

Petunia just sighs. "C'mon, Pearl. We all know that Maya and Goldie don't care. They _never_ have. All they'd have to lose was 'Petunia Diamond's company.' We can end it all right here, right now."

"You know this is crazy, right? Your status, my purpose, her life... none of it will matter anymore. This will change everything."

Petunia nods excitedly. "I know! Isn't it exciting? Best of all, Kimber won't have to live in pain anymore."

Kimber gives a tired sigh. "Pretty much. I don't know what else could be done for me at this point. Stage four cervical cancer... it would take nothing short of a miracle for me to get better. I would rather not have Spinel think I let the disease win."

"We can leave our old lives behind," Petunia says. "If I'm really going to do the right thing here, then I want to do it because it's the right thing to do. I want to do it for all the people and neophytes in the music industry. I want to do it for everyone in our community. I want to do it with _you_. We'll finally be free."

Pearl takes a moment to think over what Petunia has just said. She sighs. "Okay, I'm ready. Let's do this."

"Pearl..." Petunia squeals quietly.

"I can't believe we're going to do this."

"Well, obviously, _I_ can't die."

"I know." She then signals something to Kimber. "It's getting to be that time..."

Kimber just nods. "Yeah, yeah."

Kimber and Petunia then proceed to take off the clothes they were wearing within a matter of minutes. Kimber then begins to effectively transform herself into Petunia's doppelganger, right down to the hair.

"And... we're done," Kimber says.

"Ta-da!" Petunia exclaims. "Doesn't she just look like me?"

"Very much so, Petunia," Pearl replies, clearly unnerved by both the physical similarities between Petunia and Kimber and the magnitude of just what they are about to do.

"Soon, everyone will just call me Rose." Petunia doesn't hesitate to put on the clothes Kimber was wearing earlier nor does she hesitate to style hair the same way. "Alright, now before we go, there's one more favor I need you to do for me."

"Yes, Petunia?"

"No one can ever find out we did this. I never want to look back. So, the last thing I ask you to do as Petunia Diamond..." She gingerly folds Pearl's hands, as well as her own, onto her mouth. "...is just, please, let's never speak of this again. No one can know."

"What are we waiting for?" Kimber asks impatiently. "Let's go! I just want to get this over with!"

"Alright," Petunia says. "Now it's time to put our plan into action."

* * *

Whitney isn't quite sure what to make of it when someone knocks on her door. After a few seconds of delay, she pauses on all of her important paperwork and gets up to answer. At first, she's confused when she sees a couple police officers standing before her. Her confusion turns to worry as she immediately assumes it has something to do with one of her children.

"Is something wrong?" she asks while trying to mask her fear.

The first officer just nods his head. "Yes, Miss Diamond. Your daughter Petunia's friend notified us that she was thinking about committing suicide."

"Suicide?! My Petunia?!"

"I'm afraid so, ma'am," the second officer replies. "I'm going to have to ask that you come down with us. Maybe you could talk her out of it."

* * *

Sure enough, Whitney can see Petunia standing just at the edge of the roof of the building. It isn't long before her other daughters, Goldie and Maya, join her. They, too, had police officers visit them and had been asked to try to talk their sister out of ending her life. One of the officers hands Whitney a megaphone, which she gladly takes.

"Petunia," Whitney begins to speak through the megaphone. "Petunia, can you hear me? Whatever is bothering you... this isn't the answer. Now please come on down. I'm sure we can work this out."

Petunia doesn't respond.

"Petunia, please," Whitney continues. "Look how many people came out here for you. You have to come down. You have so much to live for. We love you..."

Petunia still doesn't respond. Instead, she jumps forward and falls, falls, falls until her body collides with a police car, killing her instantly.

"Oh my God!" Goldie screams.

Maya and Whitney can only watch as a police officer pronounces Petunia dead on the spot. It's after that moment that Whitney begins to scream.

"No!" she yells out in anguish. "No! My daughter's dead! No!"

Maya still looks on in shock, trying to process what she just witnessed. Her younger sister... her younger sister is gone. She is gone. How can she go on now? Never mind just her. How can Goldie go on? How can they all go on? All those plans they had for Petunia, all those dreams of her being as successful as them... gone. All they can do now is try to pull themselves together and console one another, a way to combat the sadness that plagues them now. While Whitney cries for the daughter she loved and lost, she cries for her own life as well.


End file.
